Worm Song - Balalaika-ified!

[SomePerson]

I arranged the Wormsong for balalaika! And I decided to record it today and put it online. [download in .ogg format (http://brian.kentosh.com/wormsongbalalaika.ogg)|download in .mp3 format (http://brian.kentosh.com/wormsongbalalaika.mp3)]. I'm not particularly great, but I kinda liked it.


If you don't know what a balalaika is it's a 3 string Russian instrument. See the Wikipedia article (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Balalaika).

If Team17 has any problems with me hosting a version of the Wormsong I'll take it down.


edit: and no being a **** and saying that music isn't art...

[Paul.Power]

I wish WMP could run OGGs... any chance of an MP3 conversion? (WinAmp kept screwing up on my last machine, so I don't really trust it)

[SomePerson]

I wish WMP could run OGGs... any chance of an MP3 conversion? (WinAmp kept screwing up on my last machine, so I don't really trust it)

No problem! I'll go edit my first post too.

http://brian.kentosh.com/wormsongbalalaika.mp3

[robowurmz]

I wish WMP could run OGGs... any chance of an MP3 conversion? (WinAmp kept screwing up on my last machine, so I don't really trust it)

My WMP runs it. Just download the K-Lite Codec Pack.

[Xinos]

That's great SomePerson! Though I half expected a phat techno beat to take over after the balalaika :cool:

[Liketyspli]

Funny. :p

[SupSuper]

Very swoosh.

[Zero72]

Pretty nifty.

[SomePerson]

Thanks!

That version was on my acoustic balalaika, imported from Siberia:p. However I've also made my very own one-of-a-kind electric balalaika, and as far as I can tell the only one of its kind in existence. Although this is neither Team17 related or the point of this thread, this (http://img246.imageshack.us/img246/7509/img2739lz9.jpg) is the one I made and on which I played this next version. Please do not make it the center of discussion...

So here is a sample of me playing the Wormsong on an electric balalaika. (http://brian.kentosh.com/wse2.mp3) Any buzzing is my workmanship making the instrument. The gap of silence between many of the notes is my playing.:p I actually find that interesting - the amp must really pick that up because I swear it doesn't sound nearly that awkward in person...:-/


Also, I'd like to make a more complete rendition. Does anyone have any idea how the kinda crazy scale-ish part go? I've been trying to figure it out by ear, but to no avail... (I figured out the main tune by ear though:p) In SupSuper's WormSongPicker (http://supremesuper.tripod.com/WormZone/Eng/Flash/WormSongPicker.html), about 29 seconds into the original Wormsong, 32 seconds into the WA wormsong, and 14 seconds into the W3D wormsong, although it seems slightly different in the w3d version... Paul? I know you're pretty dang talented with making MIDI's - have you ever done anything involving this part wherein you would know what the notes are?

[Paul.Power]

Also, I'd like to make a more complete rendition. Does anyone have any idea how the kinda crazy scale-ish part go? I've been trying to figure it out by ear, but to no avail... (I figured out the main tune by ear though:p) In SupSuper's WormSongPicker (http://supremesuper.tripod.com/WormZone/Eng/Flash/WormSongPicker.html), about 29 seconds into the original Wormsong, 32 seconds into the WA wormsong, and 14 seconds into the W3D wormsong, although it seems slightly different in the w3d version... Paul? I know you're pretty dang talented with making MIDI's - have you ever done anything involving this part wherein you would know what the notes are?

I've never worked that bit out for myself, but I do have a MIDI of the WA version that (IIRC) M3ntal made.

Here we go

C' E A C' E A E' E B C' E B A G A x2
B E G# B E G# E' E A B E A E G# F# G# x2
C' E A C' E A E' E B C' E B A G A x2
B E G# B E G# E' E A B E A E G# F# G# x2

All notes are semiquavers, tempo 125 (Or, if you prefer, demisemiquavers at tempo 62.5). C' = high C, E' = high E

And heck, here's the MIDI itself, for good measure

[Squirminator2k]

"Come on, Boffins! I've already wasted time saying 'Balalaika' when 'drum' would do!"

I shall have to listen to this when I get home from work.

[SomePerson]

I've never worked that bit out for myself, but I do have a MIDI of the WA version that (IIRC) M3ntal made.

Here we go

C' E A C' E A E' E B C' E B A G A x2
B E G# B E G# E' E A B E A E G# F# G# x2
C' E A C' E A E' E B C' E B A G A x2
B E G# B E G# E' E A B E A E G# F# G# x2

All notes are semiquavers, tempo 125 (Or, if you prefer, demisemiquavers at tempo 62.5). C' = high C, E' = high E

And heck, here's the MIDI itself, for good measure

Wow, thank you!

[worMatty]

Wow, both of those are great, SP. The harmony (if that's right?) in the acoustic version is a bit off but is that how a balalaika's supposed to sound? The electronic balalaika's punchy, isn't it? :)

# "Let your balalaika sing, what my guitar, wants to siiiiiing!" #

[SomePerson]

Wow, both of those are great, SP. The harmony (if that's right?) in the acoustic version is a bit off but is that how a balalaika's supposed to sound? The electronic balalaika's punchy, isn't it? :)

# "Let your balalaika sing, what my guitar, wants to siiiiiing!" #Thanks!

Yeah, I kinda pulled that harmony out of my rear end.

The way balalaika usually works is you have a melody string, made of metal and tuned to A, and then two nylon strings tuned the E a fourth below that. Both nylon strings are the same. Often the middle string is left to drone on E while the A string plays melody. The remaining E string usually is somewhat of a bass line, and is played with the thumb, which which further detaches it from the melody line. The two nylon strings are tuned the same so that should the player wish to not have the drone on E, one may cross their thumb over both nylon strings, making both play the same note, and essentially getting rid of the drone while allowing the player to strum all strings. The drone sounds awful when the other strings are playing significantly higher than itself and so is nearly always removed in this manner during the higher parts of songs. Usually tremolo romance songs do away with the drone as a matter of course.

In this particular one I did not use the drone because it doesn't fit very well. If you want though I can make a recording WITH the drone so you can hear what it sounds like. I'm not particularly good yet at creating harmonies for the melody line, so that's pretty much why it sounds awkward. I didn't really look at what chords I was making, I just stuck my thumb on random notes in the same key and tried to figure out something that sounded decent. It ended up being A, the sixth, for most of the song (I played it in C - I believe the real one is in A) but when the melody gets to the high points my thumb went up to D, the second. These aren't exactly particularly harmonious notes in C, so I'm actually not all that sure why I chose them. I think it sounds a bit better if I use G and high E, the fifth and third, respectively for A and D. Then on the second to last note I went down to G because A sounds bad as the harmony note for B, and then for the final note I let drop to low E. I think I might have to make a new recording and improve upon it a little.

Actually, consider everything I post in this thread a work-in-progress.


Ooh, gosh, if you read all that you're crazy...

[worMatty]

Makes sense! Keep up the good work.